Why not in September? Bettman/Batterman were too busy then with take it or leave it proposals, betting on the players capitulating.

Why now? My bet is NBC and other major sponsors came to the realization Bettman's tweaks were significantly greater than they were lead to believe. Thus the sponsors told the Bettman they were going to reconsider their involvement in the league.

I'm sure NBC put pressure on the league, but I highly doubt they made any threats.

Considering the awful numbers that came out for NBCSN, they've made it painfully obvious that if they want their sports network to go anywhere, they need the NHL.